Quote:
Originally Posted by Rusty
Going by your time line for if when the new Z appears. Upper management will be retired.  |
Unfortunately, as the process requires 18 to 24 months to design exterior and interior proposals in various stages, parallel to preliminary engineering planning and research. By the time they even get there, it's another 3 years to production (following final design approval), to where most of the budget gets spent.
It always fails after the design is set, like some more high end Infiniti models, like the FX/QX70 was to become a Cayenne/X5 rival (with better roofline) and launch as a 2019 model.
The Z35 business case failed again in January and unfortunately Saikawa is too much of yesman. An executive shakeup is truly what Nissan needs.
Money has been lost by Nissan on some of the most stupid ventures, despite selling so many Rogues, Qashqais, and Altimas. Nissan brand is scaling back in volume (focus on quality), by leaving Mitsubishi to pick up the low end.
You never want a cancellation and then reset/rebooted at Nissan, as their development lead times are the highest among the Japanese. Response time is slow.
The newest Q60 introduced in Q3 of 2016, was already approved in early 2012 (as 2-door "G30t" and "G20t" coupe) and reworked into its final design by the end of 2013 (now Q60).
The new Altima's (L42P) final design was decided on some 36 months ago, yet production just began last month. By comparison Honda, approved the latest Accord design in shorter time. Going from final styling concept in 2015 to Job 1 in 2017. 2019 Altima took from Fall 2015 to August 2018.
Nissan has a hard time balancing good quality with quicker turnaround time, seen by its competitors, especially in the present day. Then when you add 11th hour changes or cancellations, surely that makes these delays huge.